Harry Potter and the Shapeshifter
by Little Witch1
Summary: When Harry visits Hermione for the month of August, he starts having strange dreams, and he isn't the only one. Fifth year is filled with new teachers, love and darkness. HHr
1. The Dark Side of Sunflowers

A/N: Well, this, I hope, will be one of my best HP fics. This also ties in with my other fic 'The Marauders', but only a little. Some of the same characters and stuff. I hope you like it and don't forget to read and review!  
  
  
  
  
  
A warm summer wind blew threw the trees the donned the front lawns of Privet Drive. Not a blade of grass was out of place and each identical flower bed bloomed beautifuly. Inside one of these houses lived a normal, run of the mill family. There was the husband and businessman, Vernon Dursley, the wife and kind neighbor Petunia Dursley and their perfect son Dudley. They went about their business as usual, Dudley was now home from boarding school and enjoying every minute of his summer holidays. Petunia took care of her precious son and her flower beds which were now apart of the garden club and Vernon continued business as usual. All in all, they were perfectly normal. There was just one other thing. One other thing that was far from normal. This, was none other than Petunia's nefew, Harry Potter, who had also, sadly, just returned from his boarding school. Now Harry wasn't just a normal fifteen year old boy who went to a normal boarding school. No, not at all. He was a wizard and attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He was also a very famous wizard, for when he was but one years old he defeated Lord Voldemort, one of the most feared wizard in all the world. This year, along with many others had been one in which he had come face to face with Voldemort, but this time, it was different. He had witnessed Voldemort come to power this time, almost full power. He and Voldemort had duled, their wands coming together, and Harry had seen the shadows of his long deceaced parents. The evil dark lord had also killed one of the four champions, Cedric Diggory. It had been one hell of a year.  
  
"Boy! Get down here and make us breakfast!" cried Uncle Vernon, his load bellow echoing through the house.  
  
Harry got up from the desk chair and walked slowly downstairs into the kitchen. Uncle Vernon was sitting in one of the chairs, reading the morning paper, Aunt Petunia was sipping tea and Dudley, Harry's whale of a cousin, was looking hungrily at an empty plate. The previous summers diet haden't exactly gone too well, and so he was now back to eating regularly, eccept for breakfast, which was now the only part of the day where good food was slipped onto his plate. Harry walked over to the fridge and took out a bowl of strawberrys, grapes and a pitcher of orange juice. He poured the juice to each person and dished out the fruit, taking special care to give himself less than Dudley.  
Breakfast was normal, just like it had been for the past month. The thought of only one month left until school was the only thing that kept Harry going. He hated it here, it was as if he was a slave in fear of getting out of line. It was a horrible feeling. The other thing that kept him going was, her. He wouldn't admit it, not even to his best friend Ron, but he had fallen in love with his other best friend, Hermione. Last year, she had always been there for him and supportive and worried. Then, at the train station, she kissed him. It was just a little peck on the cheek, but it was something that she hadn't done before. This had got him thinking about her, and only one week ago he had come to the conclusion. That he loved her. Not like she'd ever know mind you.  
Harry cleared away the breakfast dishes just as the phone rang. Uncle Vernon stumbled up and slowly walked into the hallway. There was a few moments of silence after the anishal answer, but then there was a mumbel and Uncle Vernon waddled back into the kitchen, his round face a light magenta.  
  
"You. You have a phone call." He said, pointing a pudgey fingure at Harry.  
  
It was strange. Harry never got phone calls. Who in their right mind would be calling him here. Harry picked up the reciever caushusly, looking around to make sure no one was listening.  
  
"Hello." He said, as calmly as possible.  
  
"Hey Harry, it's Hermione." Said the voice on the other end happily.  
  
"Hermione hey! What's up?" he asked, his heart lifting.  
  
"Nothing really, but that's why I called. I was wondering if you would like to spend the remainder of the summer at my house? Just to get a brake from the Dursley's." she said.  
  
"That would be great! But what about Dumbledore?" asked Harry, leaning against the wall.  
  
"It's already cleared with him. He said that the chances Voldemort would come into my neighborhood are slim to none. So theirs nothing to worry about." She told him.  
  
"Living in a muggle neighborhood has it's perks." He said, laughing slightly.  
  
There was mumbling in the background, and Harry thought that she was talking to her father. She must have coverd the reviever because everything was very muffled, but after a few minutes she came back on.  
  
"Hey Harry, can you put your uncle on the phone? My dad wants to talk to him." She said.  
  
"Yeah, just give me a second." He said, putting the reciever down.  
  
He walked over to the kitchen where his relatives were sitting in silence. They weren't doing anything, and Dudley's chair was closer to the door so that he could evesdrop better.  
  
"Um, Uncle Vernon, Mr. Granger would like to speak with you." Said Harry, stepping back into the hallway.  
  
Vernon got up and walked back over to the phone. He picked up the phone and started to talk to Mr. Granger. Harry listend closely and saw the expresions on his uncles face change. He kept mumbling into the reciever and the colour of his face was turning from a pale pink to a dark plum. Finaly, he hung up the phone and turned to Harry.  
  
"You will be leaving today. They will be picking you up at noon." He said, walking back into the kitchen, furious that Harry might actualy have some fun this summer.  
  
A large smile spread across his face, he was spending his summer with Hermione! This was going to be great! As long as Voldemort didn't decide to come looking for him, everything would be fine. That's the one thing he worried about; putting his friends in danger. They were all at risk being captured by Voldemort for being friends with him. Hermione was especialy in danger because he loved her. That's why she could never know until this was all over. He couldn't love anyone or have feelings for anyone until this was all over. If he did, they would be a big target for Voldemort. If Voldemort got his hands on anyone who meant that much to him, it would be easy to get Harry. It would be like handing Voldemort the victory. Hermione meant so much to him that he could never do that to her, even if it meant his happiness.  
Harry packed up all his things in his trunk, checking all around the room to make sure that he wouldn't leave anything behind. He made sure that he didn't leave any books or quills or bottles of ink under the lose floorboard for he still had to do his homework in secret. After he thought he had everything, he brought his trunk downstairs and set it by the door. Then he went back to being the Dursleys slave, because, since it was already eleven thirty, he should not go out of the house before fixing Dudley breakfast. So for another half hour, he was Harry who.  
  
At exactly, and I mean exactly, noon, the shrill ring of the doorbell sounded and Harry was made to get it. Dudley looked on from the hallway, wanting to see what his cousin's strange friends looked like. Dudley was very wrong. When Harry opend the door, he expected to see the same old Hermione, but who he saw, was a long, straight haired teen who looked vaugly of what the old Hermione was. Harry did, however, decide not to stair on like some idiot, and bent down to hug her, enjoying the time that she was in his arms. When they broke, they made idel chit-chat and carried Harrys trunk and Hedwigs cage to the car. Mr. Granger was driving the mini van and smiled to him as he got into the back seat with Hermione. The ride to the Grangers was quite a long one and gave him and Hermione time to catch up on what they had been doing over the summer. During July she had gone to visit her cousins in Scottland and had a very good time. Harry soon learned that they were apart of her transformation. About halfway there, the radio was turned on and they sat in relative silence, giving Harry some time to think about the upcoming school year. Like Hermione, he had no way to know what was going on in the wizarding world, so he would be almost completely in the dark when it came to the latest news on the second rising of Voldemort. But for the summer, ignorance was bliss. After all, not even Sirius would tell him about what was going on in the wizarding world, and he was Harry's godfather! He had only gotten a few letters from Sirius, but the only information that he had gotten, was that Sirius knew who the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was. That wasn't exactly helpful, but it was better than nothing. At least Sirius was seemed happy with this professor. It wasn't another Snape then.   
After being lost in his thoughts for quite some time, Mr. Granger pulled into a rather long driveway and parked the car. Hermiones house was not what Harry had expected. It wasn't a small house, but it wasn't big eaither. It was a white house that was more tall than wide with a black slate roof and a slightly wild garden that graced the front of the house. The house had a wrap around porch that had a trumpet vine creeping up around the ceiling. He followed Hermione and her father inside, to find a beautifuly furnished home. The tables, chairs and anything else that was made of wood was dark and well varnished. There was a cherry smell wafting in from the living room, and Harry thought it came from the mantel. Everything seemed homey and rustic, yet slightly modern at the same time. He felt like he had just gone into some glorious cottage in the hills. It was very comferting.  
  
"So, let's get you settled in and then I'll show you around." Said Hermione, grabbing Hedwigs cadge and showing him to the winding staircase.   
  
"Ok." Said Harry, regaining his focus.  
  
Hermione showed him to his room, which had a rather large fourposter bed made of ash, a desk, dresser, and a rather large window that faced the back yard. He placed his trunk at the foot of the bed and Hermione opened up the window and set Hedwigs cadge right next to it. Harry joined her at the window to see a very spacious back yard. There was a rather large vegitable garden, and flowers and plants graced the sides of the house and around the garden gate and fence. Besides that, there was a rather large maple tree at the side of the yard with wind chimes hanging from some of the branches, and the rest was grass. Harry glanced at Hermione to see her smiling.  
  
"This is beautiful." Said Harry, looking back out the window.  
  
"Yeah. Why don't we go outside and enjoy it?" said Hermione, grabbing his hand and dragging him outside. "Oh, by the way, my room is right next door to yours." She added as they ran threw the kitchen.  
  
They ran past Mrs. Granger, who was reading a book at the kitchen table and sipping lemonade and into the yard. Harry distinctly saw Crookshanks, Hermione's large ginger cat, stalking a couple birds that sat on the fence. Hermione then began the tour of the yard. The backward was actualy just a small enclosur, mostly so Crookshanks couldn't get out, but beyond that was a magnificent field with a grove of trees at the far end. The houses in this neighbourhood were so far apart, that they had this much propety to do as they please. Through the middle of the field was a flagg stone path that lead to the grove. There were probably twenty trees there, all with wind chimes hanging from the branches. Between two trees was a bage hammock that had large fluffy pillows resting in it. Hermione smiled as she told him that this was her place to just, get away and be alone. Mostly a place where she went to get some piece and quiet. Sort of a thinking spot.  
  
"Well, this is it." Said Hermione, sitting down on the grass.  
  
"Wow." Said Harry, sitting next to her.  
  
"Is that all you can say? Wow." Asked Hermione, still smiling.  
  
"Yeah, basicaly." Said Harry, laughing a little.  
  
"Ron owled me this morning and told me that he would be spending time in Romania with Charlie. He's getting married." Hermione told him, stretching out on the grass and proping herself up on her elbows.  
  
"Wow, Mrs. Weasly must be pleased. One of her sons is getting married." Said Harry, looking down at her.  
  
"Yeah. Ron told me that she was absolutly extatic. She was more relieved than surprised." Said Hermione, looking up at him.  
  
"Why would she be surprised?" asked Harry, clearly puzzled by this.  
  
"Well, since Charlie lives in Romania, she dosen't get to meet any of his girlfriends, so she never knew that he had had one for about five months. When she heard that her was getting married, she was just relieved that finaly one of her sons was setteling down." Hermione explained.  
  
Harry and Hermione continued talking for most of the day, and Harry noticed how relaxed she was. More than usual. For the past four years that they had been friends, he had known her to be very focused on something all of the time, but now she was relaxed and calm. He didn't know wheather it was the lack of homework, or the fact that she had lightened up during their month apart. She seemed like she would go with any suggestion that was presented to her. She gave the atmosphere around her a very calming feel to it. Dreamy even.  
  
"Harry! Hermione! Dinner!" called Mrs. Granger from the white pickit fence.  
  
"Well, lets go." Said Hermione, getting up.  
  
They then walked back to the fenced in yard, to see that the rot iron dinning set was coverd in a tablecloth and food had been placed on top. He and Hermione sat down and as soon as they did, Mr and Mrs. Granger came out carrying plates and silverwear. The food was absolutly delicious. There was corn on the cob, salad, chicken and for desert, strawberry cheesecake. When they were done, he and Hermione went and sat in the porch swing that was on the side of the house, right next to a rather fragrent patch of roses. For a while they just sat there, not talking. Just listening to the sound of the crickets and the birds. A warm breeze blew over them and made them content to stay there forever.  
  
"What do you think this year will be like?" asked Hermione, looking up at him as she leaned her head on his shoulder.  
  
"I don't know." Said Harry, trying to think of an answer. "Will probably be more security around the castle after what happened last year." He suggested, wrapping and arm around her.  
  
"Yeah, I guess. This year is gonna be awfuly different." Said Hermione, a sad note in her voice.  
  
"I know, but right now I just don't want to think about it. It sucks all the fun out of life." Said Harry, looking into her chocolate eyes.  
  
"Your right." She said sighing. "We don't know anything, so we shouldn't worry about anything." She replyed, smiling.  
  
Harry couldn't agree more. A part of him wanted to know what was going on in the wizarding world, but the other part just wanted to be ignorant about what was going on. He just wanted to pretend that nothing was happening, and here in the muggle world, that was true. Here, Harry didn't have to worry about getting killed by some resurected psycopath. He didn't have to worry about how long he might have left to live. Here, everything was simpler. Everything was peaceful.  
Harry and Hermione lounged on the porch swing, watching the sunset behind the trees. Harry loved the feeling of being this close to Hermione. He was slouching and she was right next to him; her head resting on his shoulder. One arm was wrapped loosly around her middle and the other was slightly supporting his head. Hermione had closed her eyes, and Harry didn't know weather or not she was sleeping. She looked so peaceful, her hair falling slightly into her eyes. The sun had now completely set, and the hair grew only slightly colder. Harry then lightly shook Hermione's shoulder, it seemed she had fallen asleep.  
  
"Hermione. 'Mione. Wake up." Whisperd Harry.  
  
"Hmph. Harry, what is it?" asked Hermione sleepily, her eyes half open.  
  
"It's getting dark. Let's go inside." Said Harry, sitting up properly.  
  
Hermione sat up, streached, yawned and stood up. Together, they walked into the house, Hermione still a little sleepy eyed. Inside, the Grangers were watching some television and sitting on a large bage sofa with a black and brown blanket draped over the top. Harry glanced at the kitchen clock and saw that it was around nine o'clock. No wonder Hermione was tired. Hermione lead him into the living room and they sat down on the rug, watching t.v. until they got too tired.  
It was around eleven thirty when they all went to bed, exausted from the excitement of the day. Hermione said that she'd show him around the neighbourhood some more the next day. After all, they had a whole month to spend together. Harry dressed in his pyjamas and climbed into bed. Hopeful for a good night's sleep.  
  
*  
  
Harry found himself standing in the middle of a beautiful field of sunflowers. The sun above him was warm and there wasn't a single cload in the sky. Harry then heard someone giggling from behind him and the rustling of the sunflowers. Harry whirled around to come face to face with nothing, except the glimpse of a blue dress. In his curiosity, he followed round the corner, and heard more giggling and saw the same blue dress moving away from him. Harry continued to follow the person around the next corner, only to see a fork in the dirt path. He then heard giggling to the left, and saw the sunflowers sway back and forth and he glimpsed the blue dress.  
  
"Who's there?" he called, jogging over to the left pathway.  
  
Harry jogged along a winding path, hearing giggling all the way along. It sounded like the voice of a small child, but Harry couldn't exactly be sure. Just as Harry rounded another corner, he saw a small girl standing on the path. She was wearing a blue dress, trainers and her pale red hair was in two braids tied together with ribbon. She was standing perfectly in the middle of the path; her face emotionless. In her hands, she held a sunflower, just small enough for the girl's size. It was then that the girl started to cry. A large, fat tear trickled from her eye and fell onto the sunflowers golden petels. Harry took a step forward, to maybe comfert the girl, but then he stopped in his tracks. The sunflowers petels were slowly turning red, starting from the one that the tear had touched and spreading slowly to the others. Harry looked up at the girl and found that there was a red tear trail on her face; almost like blood. The girl then held up the flower up to him, blood red tears falling from her eyes and said,  
  
"I picked this for you." Her small voice sounding so sweet and innocent.  
  
Harry took two steps backwards, and watched as each red petel fell from around the black center of the flower. Then, the center fell off, and the thick green stem started to slither around in the girl's hands. Then, the stem turned into a small green snake and looked at him with blood red eyes. Harry looked from the snake to the girl, and saw that her eyes were now as red as the snakes, and were like serpents eyes. She dropped the snake, and Harry watched as it raised up and looked at him, boaring his eyes deep into his. Just then, the snake started to grow, and grow until it was as big as the Baslick that Harry had seen in the Chamber of Secrets. The girl then walked over so that she was standing infront of the snake, her small hands clasped together. It was then that the girl changed. She changed into a tall woman with pale red hair, thick cherry lips and the same serpent eyes that the girl had had. The woman was wearing a long blue midevil type dress with black and white trim. Her hair flowed losely down her back and her hands were no longer together, but clutching an orb that glowed eerily red.  
  
"My my, if it isn't Harry Potter. Fancy meeting you here." She said, her voice sickly sweet.  
  
"Who are you?" asked Harry, his voice smaller than he thought it was.  
  
"You're very 'get-to-the-point' arn't you. Very well. My name is Morgan L'Fay, but my full name, is Morgana Claudette L'Ashter L'Fay. I was the half sister of King Arthur, as many know." Said the woman, moving the orb from hand to hand. "I was also a Shapeshifter, and the only one known to date. I could change my shape at will anytime, anywhere, but that was just a little too much for my dear brother. So when I was sixteen, he banished me, all the power of being king going straight to his head.   
  
"I was banished to live in a cave, just outside a wood a few miles beyond my brother's kingdom. I stayed there for ten years, plotting against my brother for treating me as some kind of freak and causing me to live in egzile. When I returned, stronger than ever, I found that my brother had gotten smart over the years and had a good wizard, Merlin, helping and guarding him. Try as I may I couldn't kill my brother, Merlin faired a far better aponent than I had anticipated. So, broken and weak, I flead and left the land that I had known for all of my life.  
  
"I travled for many days until I came upon a wonderful castle in Scottland, and a kind man took pitty on me. He nursed me back to health and proved a good friend in my time of need. It was then that we began to see that we had some of the same goals, hateing people who had turned their backs on us because of what we were. We created many a...memory in that castle, and we soon married, leaving friendship behind. A few years later, we produced an heir, but fearing for his life we cursed anyone who tried to hurt him the way we had been. At time's a miss Salazar Slytherin.  
  
"Threwout the generations we only became stronger, and now, we are as strong as ever. I assum you know the most recent in our family, Thomas Marvalo Riddle, or as you know him, Lord Voldemort." Morgan told him, smiling at the last bit of information showing perfect white teeth.  
  
"Voldemort is your heir." Said Harry, his teeth clenched tightly and his hands in fists.  
  
"Yes, but somehow you managed to defeat him. Even with the very blood of Slytherin flowing through his veins he was still defeated. This time Harry Potter, you won't be so lucky." Said Morgan mercilesly.  
  
Morgan then let out a high pitchen laugh, and the glowing orb rose from her hands and hoverd in the air. The snake behind her then opened its mouth, showing large white fangs that were as large as Harry's arm. The orb then began to glow a bright red that only got stronger. Harry tried to move, but found that his legs would not move, no matter how much he willed them. Soon all he could see was bright red light and he was soon engulphed in it, ear-piercing screams surrounding him until it was all that he could hear. Morgans laugh rung above them all.  
  
*  
  
Harry awoke in a cold sweat, his breathing ragad and his pulse quick and vibrant. Harry looked around the room to find that he was in the guest room of Hermione's house, just like he was supposed to be. He looked over at the clock on the wall, and saw that it was nearly four in the morning. Too early for anyone to be up. Harry threw back the covers and walked out into the hall and looked at Hermione's door, and saw that it was closed. Harry walked down the hall and downstairs into the kitchen, hoping to get a glass of water. When he got down, he saw that someone was sitting outside in one of the rot iron chairs. In his curiosity, he opened the door to the patio and walked out, shutting the door quietly behind him. That's when he noticed that it was Hermione who was sitting there, dressed in a gray tank and navey flannel pyjama bottums. Her knees were brought up to her chest and she was rocking slightly. Causiouly, Harry approched her, and put a hand on her shoulder, making her turn to look up at him with her cinnamon eyes.  
  
"Oh, hey Harry. What are you doing up?" said Hermione, smiling slightly up at him.  
  
"I should be asking you the same thing." Said Harry, sitting in the chair opposite her.  
  
"I had a dream. A bad dream. A horrible dream." Said Hermione, shuddering slightly at the mear mention of it.  
  
"It seems that bad dreams are contagious, 'cause I had one too." Said Harry, smiling slightly at her to make her feel more comfertable.  
  
"Oh, what about?" asked Hermione, resting her chin on her knees.  
  
"You would not believe me." Said Harry, sitting indian style in the chair.  
  
"Try me." She said, cocking her head to one side, ready to listen.  
  
Harry then launched into the telling of his dream. He found that Hermione was a very good person to talk to. She gasped at all the right moments, said a concern word and ofered bits of information that she knew of. She also didn't interupt when Harry was talking about something particularly serious. It was very comferting. When he was done, he felt very shaken. After hearing it again, it made him wonder if he would ever have a normal year, or a normal night's sleep ever again. This was just getting stranger and stranger. Hermione was also very shocked. It looked like she had never heard anything like his dream.  
  
"Wow Harry, that was...strange." Said Hermione, her eyes wide.  
  
"I know, what about you? What was your dream?" asked Harry, getting ready to listen and not dwelling on his own dream.  
  
"It was your dream, except I was watching it happen, and I saw what happened after the red light and the screaming. You weren't there anymore, but Morgan and that snake were. Morgan used the orb some way and a man appeared infront of her. He had black hair and red eyes like Morgans. He looked to be about seventeen or so and was smiling horribly. He was so pale and his smile was so cold and his eyes were so red and fierce that it was like looking at death. The man was Voldemort, Harry. Voldemort when he was a teenager. But he looked more evil than he would have looked at that age. He and Morgan talked, about how they weren't going to be defeated, I didn't hear all of it, but there was one thing that stuck out. Morgan said that they were going to hurt everyone that was close to you. Anyone that you ever cared about." Said Hermione, a single tear falling down her cheak. She whiped it away quickly, even though Harry notcied.  
  
This news hit Harry hard. Voldemort was going to come after everyone he had ever cared about. This meant all of his friends. The Weaselys, Hermione, Sirius, any one of his friends from Hogwarts. They were all in danger of being killed, slauterd by Voldemort. Harry took a deep breath and got up from the chair, he was slightly shakey. He walked over to where Hermione was sitting, trying to fight back tears. His friends were hers too, and she cared about her friends more than anything. Harry kneeled beside her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. He could feel her shoulders shake with every breath she took and could feel how cold she was from being outside so long. Finaly, she stopped trying to whipe the tears away and leaned her head against his shoulder and cried. Harry pulled her closer to him, trying to bring her some comfert.  
  
"Hermione, it's ok. I'm not going anywhere and no one is going to get hurt." Whispered Harry as he hugged her.  
  
"How do you know that? You can't garuntee that everyone will be safe?" asked Hermione as she cried.  
  
"I can't 'Mione, but it was just a dream. Not all dreams come true." Whisperd Harry, then he had a thought. Something that might make her feel better. "In the morning, I'll owl Dumbledore and tell him about our dreams. He might have some answers." Suggested Harry as he leaned his head against hers.  
  
Hermione sniffed slightly and nodded her head againset his chest. "That sounds good." She murmured.  
  
They stayed like that for a long time, just sitting in eachothers arms, the closeness bringing around a comferting feeling. Harry didn't know how long he and Hermione had stayed like that. She tightened her grip around his middle and sniffed a few times. After a few more minutes, Harry realized just how tired her was, and pulled away from her slightly. She looked up at him, her face streaked with tears and her eyes were red and bloodshot. Harry leaned forward and gently kissed her forhead, then he looked back into her eyes and smiled at her softly.  
  
"I think we should go back to bed. It was four when I came down here." Said Harry, standing up and helping her up.  
  
"Yeah. I'm getting tired anyway. Thanks for talking to me Harry, I feel a lot better." Said Hermione, smiling softly at him.  
  
"That's what I'm here for." Said Harry as they walked inside.  
  
Harry colapsed into bed, right after making sure that Hermione was ok. The second that she crawled into bed, she fell asleep, and she looked peaceful instead of troubled. Harry took a look at the clock and saw that it was five thirty in the morning. He lyed down on his bed and hoped to god that he didn't have any more dreams. He needed a good nights sleep this summer.  
  
*  
  
Harry tied the letter onto Hedwigs legs and watched as she flew off. Harry had been true to his word and had written to Dumbledore right after breakfast. He had told him all about his and Hermiones dreams in great detail and hoped that Dumbledore could shed some light on the subject. Harry leaned back in his chair and looked out the window. It was a beautiful clear blue day and the weather was perfect for the summer. Just as Harry was being lost in his thoughts, he heard a knock on his door and he turned to see Hermione. She was leaning against the doorframe wearing blue jeans and a bage shirt with a botanical print on it. Her hair was swept up at the sides and she had on a pair of black shoes. She smiled to him as he got up from the chair, and Harry saw that there was no book in her hand.  
  
"Got a good sleep I see." Said Harry, walking over to her.  
  
"Yeah. What about you?" asked Hermione, leading the way down stairs.  
  
"Awsome. What are we doing today?" asked Harry as they enterd the living room.  
  
"Well, first I want to show you around the neighbourhood, then we can just hang out here." Said Hermione, opening the door and walking out the door.  
  
They walked around the rather large neighbourhood. Since the houses were farther apart then most, it took them quite some time to walk around and get back home. This gave them time to talk. They talked about anything; school, books, movies, t.v, people from Hogwarts and anything else that came up. It took them the best part of an hour as they walked slowly around. When they got back, they found that the house was empty and Hermione found a note taped to the fridge. Her parents had gone out shopping and wouldn't be back for several hours, so Harry and Hermione decided to go out to the grove of trees and read for a little while. Hermione made a pitcher of lemonade and brought it out with them. Since the hammock was so big, it could fit two people, so they each grabbed a pillow and lay down at different sides of the hammock. Harry had broguht out a book that he had gotten on his last trip to Hogsmeade 'Quidditch Stars of the Twentyith Century'. Hermione had brought out a new one too, 'Witches and Wizards that Changed the World'. Harry found it very peaceful to just sit there with Hermione and read. A warm breeze blew over them and an hour and a half passed until two owls flew over to them. One was Hedwig and had two letters attached to her leg and the other was a brown tawny that they didn't know. Hedwig pertched herself on Harry's shoulder and the tawny dropped off a newspaper into Hermione's lap and flew off.  
  
"What's that?" asked Harry as both he and Hermione put their books down.  
  
"The Daily Profet. I have a subscription, but I thought it had stopped at the end of the school year. I never got one all summer until now." Said Hermione, unrolling the paper.  
  
Harry untied the parchment from Hedwigs leg and found that they were both adressed to the two of them. Harry picked up one and unrolled it and tapped Hermione on the leg to grab her attention.  
  
"Hey Herm, these are for both of us." Said Harry, moving so that they could both read.  
  
Dear Harry and Hermione,  
  
Your dreams seem very strange to me. What Morgan told you was factual, she did marry Slytherin and Voldemort is his heir. If you have another dream like this, please owl me as soon as possible. If you do not have another, once you reach Hogwarts please come straight to my office and not the Great Hall. I hope you have a great summer!  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Albus Dumbledore  
  
The second one was from McGonagall and was very formal, mostly the regular back to school letter that they got every summer, but this had a twist to it. Hermione was very happy about this.  
  
Dear Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger,  
  
Congratulations, you both have been made Prefects for the Gryffindor house. Your Prefects badges are enclosed in the envilope.  
Term starts on September the first and the train leaves at ten o'clock. The following list of books for this year have been enclosed.  
  
Yours sincerely,  
  
Minerva McGonagal  
Deputy Headmistress  
  
"Wow. We're prefects." Said Harry, slightly stunned at the fact that HE had been made a prefect. After all, he had gotten into more trouble than anyone in the whole school.  
  
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" cried Hermione, thrusting her fists in the air in her happiness. She jumped, or tried to, on the spot and Harry smiled at her as she acted like an excited child.  
  
"Happy are we?" asked Harry sarcasticly, smiling broadly at her.  
  
"Of course! This is awsome! I can't believe it!" said Hermione who was smiling from ear to ear.  
  
"'Mione, you're the smartest witch in our year, in the school! How can you not believe it?" asked Harry in disbelief.  
  
"Well, with all the trouble that I've done, thanks to you and Ron, I never thought that I would make it. Brains aren't everything." Said Hermione, who was relaxing her jaw slightly.  
  
"Hermione, listen to me. You are encredible. You are not just brains, but you are an encredibly strong person. The strongest I know. Don't doubt yourself." Said Harry, taking her hands in his. "I'm surprised that I was made a prefect." He added.  
  
"Harry, you are smart and are capable of anything. You have done a lot of things that most grown wizards never would have done. It's no surprise that you were made a prefect." Said Hermione, giving him a version of his peptalk.  
  
"Your right." Said Harry, smiling at her. "Your so right."  
  
"Now don't let it go to your head." Said Hermione, shaking a finger at him.  
  
"Never!" scoffed Harry, clutching his heart as he gaped at her.  
  
"Funny." Laughed Hermione, putting the letters back on the ground and lying back to read.  
  
They read for quite some time, Harry finaly got sick of it and put the book back down on the ground and watched Hermione read. He loved her concentration as she read and the way her eyes lit up when she read something particularly interesting. He loved how the light touched her hair just right making it shine and making her even more beautiful. Harry didn't realize that he was starring until Hermione sighed, put down the book on the ground and looked back at him. She smiled slightly, and Harry hoped that she haden't known that he had been starring at her.  
  
"I think that that's enough reading for one day." Said Hermione, yawning a little.  
  
"I never thought I'd live to see you not want to read." Gasped Harry with false shock.  
  
"Hey, no one can read forever. Besides, I need something to read at Hogwarts." She said laughing as she jumped out of the hammock. Hermione walked away back to the house, leaving her things to be picked up later. After a few seconds, Harry smirked to himself, jumped off the hammock and ran after her. When he did catch up to her, she raced off to the house, and he chased after her; their laughter echoing through the neighborhood.  
  
  
A/N: Well, this is the first chapter in my little saga. I hope you all liked this, and don't worry. All you H/H shippers can rest easy. They will get together...maybe. I'm so bad... REVIEW!!!!! 


	2. Little Black Books

A/N: I hope you like this one. I work hard on all my stories. Before you continue, guess who the new DADA teacher is. Remember from the first chapter, Sirius knew who it was. Read and review!!  
  
  
  
It was September first, and Harry awoke quite early to get ready for school. He packed up his trunk, his homework being practicaly perfect thanks to Hermione, and went downstairs. The Grangers were sitting down at the kitchen table, Mrs. Granger was dishing out pancakes and fruit onto plates, a pitcher of syrup in the center. Harry took a seat and began to eat as he talked to a slightly hyper active Hermione. She was really excited to get back to school, well not really excited, but excited enough to make Harry laugh histericaly into his orange juice. After breakfast he and Hermione brought down their trunks and put them into the mini van. They also brought down Hedwig's cadge, which housed a very disgruntaled owl, and Crookshanks in his wicker basket. Mr. Granger was going to drive them to the station, Mrs. Granger had to go to the office, so they pilled into the van and drove to Kings Cross Station. The ride was mostly silent, but every now and then he and Hermione would strike up a conversation about being Prefects or what was coming this year.   
A half hour later, they arrived at the station and they pilled their things onto the trollys. After saying good-bye to Mr. Granger, and thanking him for a wonderful summer, they walked to the barrier. It took longer than anticipated to get through the barrier. Many muggles were there, walking infront of the barrier or bumping into them. Once they reached Platform 9 3/4, they stoad their things on the train and went outside to wait for Ron. It didn't take long for them to find him, not to mention the rest of the family. There was Fred and George, twins and famous for their tricks, Ginny, the youngest Weasley and the only girl in the family. Then there was Ron, their best friend standing at six foot with auburn hair and a light dusting of freckles. They waved to him and he walked over, Ginny tagging along behind him.  
  
"Hey guys! How was your summer?" asked Ron as they met up.  
  
"It was great." Said Harry, looking at a smiling Hermione.  
  
"What about yours?" asked Hermione, looking up at Ron who towered over her.  
  
"The wedding was great! Charlies wife, Shelly, is really nice and the food was great!" said Ron as they walked toward the train. "The only bad thing was Percy." He added, talking about his older brother.  
  
"What's wrong with him?" asked Harry, entering the train.  
  
"He kept talking about how horrible it was about Crouch. It was like he was the bloody mesiah! If I hear him talk about him one more time I will kill something." Said Ron, anger and anoyance in his voice.  
  
"Don't mind him. He just dosen't want to go back to school." Said Ginny, who was not as quiet as she was last year.  
  
"Who does?" cried Ron, throughing his hands up in the air.  
  
"I do for that matter!" said Hermione, frowning at him as they walked to the far end of the train.  
  
"Woah. What happened to your hair? It's so...straight." Said Ron, finaly noticing how Hermione's looks had changed.  
  
"Thank you captin obvious!" cried Hermione, who was a little irritated. "Now lets please go and find a compartment." She added, opening up the door to their usual compartment.  
  
When she opened the door, Harry noticed that there was a woman already in it. The others seemed to notice too because they all stopped and stood in the doorway. The woman was sitting by the window reading a small muggle paperback novel. She was tall by the looks of it with long black hair and creamy white skin. She looked up at them, finaly noticing their precence, with large dark eyes. She smiled at them and took her feet off the seat across from her. There was something familiar about her, like he had seen her before, and a likeness to someone that Harry just couldn't place. She put the book down and looked at each of them curiously. Like she was trying to place them.  
  
"I'm sorry. We didn't know anyone was in the compartment." Said Ginny, moving to the front of the group so she didn't have to yell.  
  
"Oh that's alright. I could use the company." Said the woman, patting the seat next to her.  
  
Uncertantly they walked into the compartment, Ron shutting the door behind them. Ginny sat down next to the woman, and Harry, Ron and Hermione sat down across from them, looking at eachother. It seemed that the other two were having the same thoughts as Harry. He could still not place her. She had this familiarity, like he had talked to her or known her before, but he didn't recognize her face. It was strange.  
  
"You must be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor." Said Ginny, trying to make small talk with this woman.  
  
"Yes. My names Arabella Black, or Professor Black to you." She said, smiling at them all. Her name hit Harry like a bolt of lightning. Arabella was the name of his old nanny that he used to stay with before Hogwarts, and Black, as common a name as it is, was the last name of Sirius. Who was she?  
  
"How did you come uppon the job?" asked Hermione, who recoverd from the shock of the name first.  
  
"My friend recommended me. He used to teach at Hogwarts and when he heard that they were looking for a new DADA professor, well, he thought I should do it. I was the only applicant." Said Arabella, smirking slightly.  
  
"Who was your friend? Maybe he taught us." Said Harry, wanting to know as much about her as he could.  
  
"My friend, his names Remus Lupin. I've known him for ages." Said Arabella.  
  
"You're friends with Lupin?" asked Ron, his mouth hanging open slightly.  
  
"Yes. I've known him since we were eleven. We're very good friends." Said Arabella, smiling even wider.  
  
"Wow." Said Harry, not knowing what else to say.  
  
"It's not that amazing." Said Arabella. "Now, If you don't have any more questions, then I will continue my reading." She added, opening her book back up.  
  
The rest of the ride went by smoothly. Malfoy didn't even come to bother them today, a real abnormality. Soon the train hissed to a stop and, along with Arabella, they got out and got into the horseless carriges that would take you up to the castle. Since there was no other way for her to get to the castle, Arabella rode with them. Even though it was a little cramped. Once they got up to the castle, Harry, Ron, Hermione ad Ginny went to the Gryffindor table to wait for the sorting. Arabella went up to the staff table, and to his great displeasure, clapped Snape on the back while smiling broadly. She sat down, and kept looking over at him, a mistivus glint in her eyes. Soon the sorting commenced, and everything went quite smoothly. Gryffindor gained a few new students, and to Harry's preference, not another Creevey. Two were quite enough. Just before the feast was to begin, Dumbledore stood up to address the students and staff.  
  
"Welcome back to Hogwarts! I hope that this year will be full of great new experiences for all, both staff and students. I have a few annoncements to start with. First, we have a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor with us, Professor Black." Started Dumbledore, motioning for Arabella to stand.  
As she did, the hall began to whisper, most not forgetting the name of Sirius Black. The teachers also started to whisper, or grumble as it were. Snape looked especialy displeased, and McGonagall sported a frown that could rival that of Filch. Arabella herself did nothing but smile, she seemed pleased with the whispering that was going around. This was a strange woman.  
  
"Second, the Forest is once again forbbiden. I warn any student that crossing it will mean extreame danger and should not be entered under ANY cercumstances. Lastly, because of the incodent last year I am afraid that any Quidditch practicing will be canceled until further notice. Let the feast begin!" Said Dumbledore, the food apearing on the golden plates.  
  
This was horrible! No Quidditch again! Last year it had been canceled because of the Triwizard Tournament, but this year Harry had hoped that it would be back on again. This was probably the worst news he could ever receive. Today at least. After the grumbling and groaning died down, everyone dug in and ate 'till their hearts content. Soon the plates were clear and everyone got up to leave, eccept Harry and Hermione. They were to follow Dumbledore to his office to talk to him. Once everyone was gone, the old wizard got up and led the way out of the Great Hall. It took some convincing on his part to get out of there. It seemed not all the professors agreed on his decision to have Arabella on staff. Soon they reached the stone gargoyle and Dumbledore said the password. He then led the way up to his office.  
  
"Sit, sit." He said as he sat behind his desk. They sat down and looked at their headmaster, slightly confused. "I want to talk to both of you about your dreams. You said something very strange in it. You said that she had a red orb in her hand. Could you describe it?" said Dumbledore, leaning on his elbows.  
  
"Well," said Harry. "It glowed red, and got brighter as her anger increased. At the end of the dream, the orb got so bright that it blinded us, and screaming came from it." He described, trying to remember it.  
  
Dumbledore picked up a book and opened it, turning the pages magicly until he found what he was looking for. "It says here that after she married Salazar, around the middle of their marrige, she created an orb, and in it she placed all of the fear, despair and sadness of the world into it. When she uses the orb, it could whipe out whole cities, even whole countries. One of the reasons why Camolot dosen't exist today is because of that. She distroyed it after Merlin died. After along while, she became so infused with anger and hatred that she distroyed herself, but not after distroying many villages and kingdoms in the process." Said Dumbledore, showing them the book.  
  
"But professor, what has that got to do with us? Why are we getting dreams of her when she poses no threat?" asked Hermione, placing the book back on the desk.  
  
"It seems that she, like Slytherin, hates halfbloods and muggleborns, and has found a way to communicate with people from beyond death; mainy you two and Voldemort. Personaly I think that she wants what he wants, and will do anything to get it to pass." Said Dumbledore, his voice slightly grave.  
  
"Oh, well that makes sense." Said Hermione, her voice small and worrisome.  
  
"What can we do about it?" asked Harry, anything that had to do with Voldemort was not good. It was never good.  
  
"All you can do now, is waite for the next dream. I would like it if you would record them. It will help you understand them better." Said Dumbledore, handing them both plain muggle books. They were black felt with a small felt clasp and each page was blank white paper.  
  
"Thank you professor." Said Harry, getting up from the chair.  
  
"Good night you two." He said, smiling at them as he put the book away.  
  
Harry and Hermione walked out of the office and into the semi-busey hall. The only people walking around were teachers and prefects. They walked threw the halls, not really going anywhere. They didn't talk for a while, but were really close together as they walked. Harry hated having dreams like these. They were always filled with despair and sorror. He knew how Hermione felt. Afraid of having another one of those dreams, filled with screaming and pain. Afraid that one day those screams might come from someone she cared about. Out of an act of pure comfert, Harry wrapped an arm around her shoulders and gently kissed her temple. She leaned her head against his chest and sighed deeply. Dear god...  
  
"I don't want to have another dream like that. I don't want to feel cold, like death is breathing down my nealk." She said, shaking her head and letting a small sniffle escape.  
  
"It's ok 'Mione. We'll go through it together. It's gonna be ok." Whispered Harry, rubbing his hand up and down her arm soothingly.  
  
"Thank you Harry. What would I do without you?" asked Hermione, looking up at him with watery brown eyes.  
  
"Let's hope we don't have to find out..." he whispered, leading her up a stairwell.  
  
It seemed to take forever to get to the portrat hole. Once they got there, they took a minute to compose themselves, whipe the tears away and to take a few good deep breaths. Once they were back to their old selves, they climbed through the hole and into a nearly empty common room. The only ones there were Ron, Ginny, Seamus and Lavender. Harry and Hermione walked over to them and took a seat on the sofa and watched as Ron beat Ginny at chess. Soon the others left, and it was only the trio left in the common room to talk.  
  
"So, what did Dumbledore want?" asked Ron, leaving the chessboard on the table.  
  
"Just wanted to talk. Nothing special." Said Harry, not wanting to worry Ron with this.  
  
"Ok. But if it's something serious, then you better tell me. Ok?" said Ron, looking at both of them sternly.  
  
"We will. Don't worry." Said Hermione, glancing at Harry from the corner of her eye.  
  
They talked a little bit longer, about their summer and Charlie's wedding, and then they got up to go to bed. They said good night, but Harry stayed behind. Once Ron was upstairs, Harry turned to Hermione and hugged her gently.  
  
"'Night Harry." She whispered, hugging him back.  
  
"Good night. Sweet dreams." He whispered back, smiling as he said it.  
  
"I hope. We'll get through this, right?" she said, pulling away.  
  
"We always do." He said, smiling at her.  
  
Harry watched as she walked up the girl's dormatory stairs before turning around to go up the boy's stairs. He changed into his pyjamas, placing the book on his bedside table and climbed into bed. Harry hoped that neither he nor Hermione would have any dreams for a while. It would sort of ruin the good mood that they were all in. He just wanted one peaceful year. Just one single peaceful year where nothing went wrong...it could happen.  
  
*  
  
Harry awoke to a happy, comferting feeling in him. He didn't have any bad dreams that night, and was glad about that. He got up, changed into some robes and walked down into the common room, where Ron and Hermione were already waiting. Together they walked down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Harry noticed that the teachers were still sort of sore about Arabella being there. She must not have been well liked when she was at school.  
Just as breakfast was about to end the timetables were passed out. The first thing that morning was Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Harry was anxious to see how good a teacher she was. So far the best had been Lupin, and if they were friends, then she might be just as good. After breakfast, he, Ron and Hermione walked to the DADA room, to find that students were already filing in. Sadly they had this class with the Slytherins, but as they walked in, they found that Arabella wasn't there yet. They took their seats behind the first row and waited for Arabella to show up.  
  
"I wonder how good a professor she'll be." Whispered Hermione, looking back and forth at them.  
  
"I don't know. She might be good. Just as long as she's not Lockheart." Said Harry, speaking about their second year professor.  
  
"Yeah. No more pixies. No more pixies." Chanted Ron, his fingures crossed.  
  
"He wasn't that bad." Said Hermione defensivly, until Harry and Ron looked at her. "Ok he was." She said, leaning back in her chair.  
  
Just then the door flew open and Arabella walked in, a rather large book in her hand. She placed the book on the desk and turned to them, her dark eyes twinkling. She smiled at the class and Harry notcied that her breathing was heavy like she had run a long distance. Arabella clasped her hands together and gazed around the room, finaly catching her breath and speaking to them.  
  
"Well, I hope that this year goes quite well and that you get as much as possible out of this course. It has come to my attention that last year you studied the unforgitable curses. We will be doing a little bit on this subject, but not much." Said Arabella, moving to the blackboard. "We will also be covering the following creatures: The Kelpi, the Re'em, and the Spinx. Since these creatures are so dangerous, I will be using a Bogart so that you can learn how to defend against them." Arabella wrote this down on the blackboard as she said it.   
  
The rest of the class went by quite well. Slytherin house got twenty points taken off, for they didn't seem to like Arabella any more than the professors did. Both Pansy and Malfoy had been stupid enough to whisper something, which Arabella heard. They all thought, and the rest of the Slytherins agreed, that Arabella was uncwolified, stuck up and an anoyance to the school. Of course, you would think that Arabella would be furious, but that was not her reaction. She was...smiling. What she said was even more of a surprise, but Harry seemed to enjoy Malfoy's reaction.  
  
"Well, I certanatly think that I'm a little bit uncwolified, I can be stuck up and I am a rather large anoyance. Thank you for reminding my Draco." She had said, smiling at him. "Oh, and twenty points from Slytherin for insulting a professor." She had added while walking away from him.  
  
Malfoy looked like someone had slapped him in the face. Pansy was glairing at Arabella, her cold steely eyes burning with rage. Malfoy didn't say anything for a few minutes, and he was still shocked at her words when he recovered. After class, when everyone was walking out and talking about what a good class that had been, Malfoy was walking very fast to his next class, his head low and he was mumbling to himself. Not a single professor at Hogwarts would have taken the insults he had thrown at Arabella like the way she had. Any other professor would have yelled at him, sent him to the headmaster's office, or anything than agree with him. Not even Professor Trelweny, who was as crazy as a loon, would have agreed and then calmly deducted points from his house. If they could, they probably would have strangled him then and there, instead of walking away and getting back to the rest of the class. She was a strange one.  
  
"Wow! Could you believe her? She didn't even raise her voice!" said Ron, in complete aw at what Arabella had said to Malfoy. "She's even more restrained than you 'Mione!"  
  
"You're right. If it were me, I would have slapped him. I don't know how she could have handled it so cooly." Said Hermione, wondering how Arabella could have been so calm to someone like Malfoy.  
  
"It was quite a show. I'll say this, she is a good teacher." Said Harry, happy that Malfoy was still in utter shock.  
  
They continued through the day without anything else big happening. By the end of the day, everyone was talking about Arabella and what had happened in Harry's class. That wasn't the only class where she left her mark. In practicaly each class she taught today something had happened. Each person who had come out had a good, or sometimes bad, impression of Arabella, but it was mostly good. Right after lunch, Fred and George had had Arabella's class. They had it with the Ravenclaws, and some rather snooty ones decided that Arabella was wrong about a few things, but instead of pointing it out nicely, they made her look like an idiot. Now a normal professor would have yelled at them and deducted many, many points, but not Arabella. Instead, she took in the criticism and made some very witty comments that left the girls stunned and re-thinking their plan of action. Both Fred and George loved the class, and could not stop talking about it for the rest of the day. Luckily Lee Jorden was there to listen. The teachers, with the ecception of Dumbledore, were still pretty pissed off that Arabella was teaching at Hogwarts, but when the news of this day's action's got to their ears, well they were impressed. Even Snape had to admit that she was good, as he would have lost his temper in seconds. Their dispositions didn't change as drasticly as some would have wanted, but they were now atleast speaking to Arabella and not grumbling at her. It was more of an angerd silence. Arabella however was as happy and energetic as ever.  
  
*  
  
Classes went by normaly, the Gryffindors had homework piled on them, but it was the third week into school when the news Harry had been hoping for had come. Right after afternoon classes everyone was crowded around a notice and Ron, who was still the tallest, read over peoples heads. Quidditch was officialy back on and the new Gryffindor captin had been posted right under the notice. This year's captin, or rather captins, were Fred and George Weasly, who were Beaters for the Gryffindor team. They were extreamly good and had gotten Harry out of a few scrapes, like in his second year when the Bludgers were fixed to come straight at him no matter who they were aimed at. Those two were a perfect choice for captin, and as long as they stayed out of detention, the team would be better than ever. There was also another notice, there were to be tryouts for a new keeper for Oliver Wood, who had also been captin, had graduated the previous year. This was great news for some people, as an open spot on any Quidditch team was a great opportunity. Both Ron and Ginny wanted to try out for the team, seeing as they were both members of a very Quidditch orriented family. Harry thought it would be nice to have one of them on the team, it would make the practices less rigorous with one of them there.  
  
"So when are the try-outs?" asked Hermione as she looked over a book and wrote notes on a piece of parchment.  
  
"Friday. I'm glad that Quidditch is back on. It will keep my mind off everything that's happening." Said Harry, picking a book up off a pile that had collected on the table.  
  
"I know what you mean. It's hard to concentrate on everyday life when there is so much going on." Said Hermione, turning a few pages of the book. "What do you think will happen this year? I mean, concerning the dreams." She asked.  
  
"I really don't know. Anything could happen I guess, but if we have any more dreams than something...interesting is bound to happen this year." Said Harry, closing the book and pushing it away from him.  
  
Hermione did the same thing, closing the small black book and putting her quill down. Her hair was in a rather messey ponytail and she looked extreamly tired. They both had been working on information about Morgan and the history of Slytherin, per Dumbledore's request. They had found mountains of books on Slytherin, but only two on Morgan. It seemed that while her story was one to be told, she was not well liked enough to be put into a book. They had been working in the Library since before dinner and still had many books to look through. Harry was not one of the Library's favorite customers, but it seemed he would be spending a lot of his time in here. So far neither of them had had a single dream since the summer holidays, but they were still warry, as the next one could catch them off guard and be extreamly grusom. Hermione was being very strong about this, which was her usual nature. Although she was being her normal self, even if she wasn't spending every waking moment in the Library, Harry thought that she might lose that cool and controlled nature and brake down. Harry would never doubt her strength, but grusom dreams weren't exactly her field. He just hoped that she could handle them when they came.  
  
"Do you want to quit for the day? I mean, we've been working non-stop and I would like to get some rest." She said, small whisps of brown hair falling around her face.  
  
"Do you even have to ask," He said, getting up and streching before following her out of the Library. They both made sure that their books were with them as losing them would not be a good thing to do.  
  
They walked to the common room, seeing that everyone was still present finishing homework, talking or playing games. The pair walked over to the sofa and sat down, watching lazily as Ron creamed Ginny in a game of wizard's chess. After all, Ron was Gryffindor's Chess Champion so to speak. It took two games of Exploding Snap, three more games of chess and a very interesting conversation between Ron and Hermione concerning muggle and wizarding rock bands for Harry to finaly get up and walk sluggishly to his room. This day had just seemed to drag on, and he hoped that he would have a peaceful night. He changed into his nightclothes and pulled the curtain around his four-poster bed, sighing as he rested his head on the down pillow. He slowly slipped into a dream-free sleep, ntohing disturbing him until the next day where Quidditch try-out's awaited.  
  
  
A/N: I know, this took along time, but so far I'm trying to finish my MWPP fic and get a D/Hr fic up. I won't go too much into Quidditch, but I may discribe a game or two. Thank you to all who have reviewed! 


	3. Dreams Can Be Dangerous To Your Health

A/N: This is chapter three! I hope that you like this fic and will REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanx!  
  
  
  
It was now Halloween, and the Great Hall, not to mention the rest of the castle, was all decked out. There were giant pumpkins in the Great Hall with live bats flying around the ceiling, streamers along banisters and cobwebs in every nook and cranny. The Hogwarts ghosts were flying around and being extra frightening towards the students and Peeves the poltergeist was cackling and singing stupid Halloween songs. Quidditch try-outs had gone quite well, Ron now being the newest member of the team. He was a surprisingly good keeper. Everyone was in high spirits about the previous weekends match, Gryffindor coming out the victor. Sure this day should be fun with everyone not being able to wait for the next day when they would go to Hogsmeade, but not everyone shared that sentiment. That day in Defense Against the Dark Arts, Arabella looked particularly down, which was a first for her. She looked liked she had been crying and during the whole lesson she was sniffling and glancing at a picture on her desk that faced the blackboard. Every minute of the class she looked like she would burst into tears and her appearance didn't hold the class that it usually had. Her hair was scraggly and looked like it hadn't been brushed, her face was white and tearstained, and her eyes were red and puffy. It was only the beginning of the day and already she looked as if she had been through hell and back. Parvati Patil was the first person to ask her what was wrong.  
  
"Um, Professor, what's wrong?" asked Parvati hesitantly, her hand slightly raised.  
  
"Nothings wrong, absolutely nothing. Everything's fine." Whisperd Arabella, her voice was horse and her smile was weak.  
  
"Might I say that you don't look fine Professor." Said Lavender Brown, concern in her voice.  
  
"I assure you, I'm perfectly fine. Never felt better." Said Arabella, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. She gripped the book she was reading from quite hard and from what Harry could see, her knuckles turned white.  
  
All of the Gryffindors were very concerned about her through out the rest of the class. Harry, Ron and Hermione decided to talk to her about it after the class was done, and far too soon the bell sounded and the class began to filter out. Once everyone was gone, they cautiously walked up to her desk where Arabella had ended up sitting. She had her head in her hands and she was mumbling to herself, which made Harry think that she was going off the deep end. She seemed to be mumbling the same thing over and over, 'Don't grieve, they wouldn't want you to. It won't bring them back.' It seemed that she had lost someone, but who was the question.  
  
"Um, Professor Black. May we ask what's wrong?" asked Hermione, who was clutching her bag rather tightly.  
  
"I said before that nothing was wrong." Said Arabella, her voice low and hushed.  
  
"Are you sure?" asked Hermione again, who worried about her professor.  
  
"Well, let me tell you something. If you lost your two best friends fourteen years ago today you would cry too." Said Arabella, picking up the frame and letting two tears fall down her cheeks.  
  
"We'll just go then." Said Ron, not exactly comfortable in the same room as a crying professor.  
  
Arabella didn't answer, and the three ran out of the classroom and to their next class, History of Magic. When they got there, they sat in silence. Harry was trying to get the picture of Arabella out of his mind. She looked so devastated at her memories of losing her best friends, and there looked to be no stopping her grieving. Through out the rest of the class, all the Gryffindors could talk about was Arabella and her brake down. Everyone had there own theories as to why she was so upset, but it seemed that nothing came close to the truth.   
Soon it was lunch, and to Harry's surprise Arabella showed up. She didn't seem to be eating much, and had a listless expression on her face. During the middle of lunch, a single large tawny owl flew into the Great Hall. The owl flew right to Arabella where it dropped a note on her half empty plate and then flew off. Arabella opened the letter and read it, then, with a dramatic sweep of her robes, ran out of the Great Hall. Everyone stared after her before getting back to their meals, but it seemed that something was defiantly wrong with her, the question on everyone's minds was, what?  
  
The Halloween feast came quickly, and each house table was laden with piles of sweets, each guaranteed to cause one or more cavities. Once the feast began, Harry found that Arabella had neglected to show up, and though no one else noticed, she must be having a terrible brake down. The feast went by without a hitch, unlike first year when a troll was set lose in the castle. Once everyone was back in there common rooms, it seemed that no one wanted to sleep. Fred and George went down to the kitchens and got some more snacks, including bottles of butter beer, a delicious drink that made the consumer feel very warm and fuzzy. The after-feast party went on to past midnight, and once all of the sweets were consumed, a rather large mess having been made, everyone sleepily made there was up to bed. Harry changed very slowly and then crawled into bed, where he immediately fell asleep, although he had a feeling that it wouldn't last very long.  
  
*  
  
Harry found himself just outside a rather thick wood during a pitch-black night, where the only light came from the moon. At closer inspection, he found that there was a small village next to him. The houses were all very old wooden ones with thatch roofs and plank doors. In the distance, Harry could just make out a small church with a steeple and bell, a cemetery was right next to it. Harry looked around, trying to see whether there was anyone left in the street, but there wasn't a soul there.   
Everything seemed so peaceful and calm, until he spotted it. A tiny red light about the size of a thimble was shinning in the distance, and it seemed to be getting brighter. The light got so bright, that it illuminated the town and soon set fire to the nearest house. The bright orange and red flames spread across the roof and down one side of the house, soon catching the near-by tree. A family came screaming out of the house, a tiny girl in the arms of a woman, the man moving them farther away from the burning house. Soon the bright red light began setting other houses on fire, and the street was soon filled with many screaming and crying people. Some didn't seem to make it out of their house before it collapsed or they were burned to death, and there was a lingering air of evil. As the houses burned, many people ran towards the church, seeking refuge, but just as they neared it, a woman with red hair stepped in front of them. She held the orb of red light in her hand and was smiling evilly, and let out a high pitched laugh; showing white teeth. Then, the church started smoldering and soon caught fire in a blaze of red, gold and yellow. She smiled at the people, who were terrified of what she might do.  
  
"This is what you get for loving him. This is what you get for having him as your king!" she cried as the orb got brighter and brighter until the whole village was filled with the sound of screaming.  
  
The people began to run in the opposite direction, but the woman made a tutting sound, and made the orb glow brighter, as it engulphed an old man in a night cap. The man let out a sickening scream and began to twitch madly. His whole body seemed to be braking, and his eyes were filled with horrible pain, but the woman just smiled. After a minute of horrible pain, there was a sickening crack, and the man fell to the ground...dead. The town's people went mad and ran away from the woman, but they were not fast enough. The orb's light continued to engulph people, sometimes two at a time, and each one of them felt terrible, blinding pain before they died. Men, woman and children were being slaughtered as the woman laughed, her eyes glowing with rage and revenge.  
Harry began to back up, he didn't want to suffer the fate of these people. The village had long been burned to the ground and now all was left was smoldering, and sometimes burning, ash. The woman advanced towards him and held the orb in front of her and Harry watched helplessly as it glowed intensely.  
  
"Why Harry, don't you recognize me? Or are you too shocked to think?" asked the woman, who Harry recognized as Morgan. "Well, I guess this must be your time to die. Say hello to your parents for me." She said, smiling broadly and she was blocked out by the red light.  
  
All Harry could see was red light, and he felt every bone in his body try to leap out. Everything was braking, and he could feel hot blood run down his face, arms and legs. Soon his eyes began to glaze over, and he couldn't see anything. All Harry heard was screaming, and his body was becoming numb with pain. There was then a crack that rang above the screaming and everything was silent and painless. There was no throbbing, no twisting, no braking. There was nothing.  
  
*  
  
Harry awoke to a thin light pouring through the window and slight numbness that lingered throughout his body. He reached over to the night table and grabbed his glasses, putting them on with shaky hands. He could still hear the screaming, the pictures of the people, the village, the destruction still fresh in his mind. He could still feel a little bit of the pain, and could still feel the heat of the fire on his body. Slowly he got up and walked quietly out of the dormitory where he entered a semi-bright common room.   
Across the room, he could see Hermione standing on the stairs to the girl's dormitory. She looked white as a ghost and was shaking uncontrollably. They looked at each other for a few seconds, Harry searched her eyes, but only found fear and sadness. He walked quickly to the center of the room where Hermione ran to him and through her arms around his neck. Then, the normal calm and strong Hermione that Harry knew, began to sob, her shoulders shaking horribly. Harry could feel her tears soak through his t-shirt and wet his bare shoulder. He smoothed down her hair rhythmically, and no matter how hard he tried to be brave for her, he felt two, fat, salty tears fall down his cheeks. He moved her over to one of the sofas, and cradled her in his arms until she stopped crying.  
  
"Damn these dreams." She sniffed, whipping her eyes with the back of her hand.  
  
"It's ok 'Mione. They'll go away. Eventually." Whispered Harry, rubbing her back.  
  
"Why are we, in particular, be getting them. Wouldn't Voldemort get them?" said Hermione, still wrapped up in his arms.  
  
"I don't know. Maybe that sick-o Morgan decided to have a little fun and give us her memories. Voldemort is probably getting them too." Said Harry, hugging her close.  
  
"They are her memories. She's in each one, destroying lives." Said Hermione, pulling him closer to her by his shirt. "Do we have to write in our journals tonight? I think I'll never forget that dream." She whispered.  
  
"We can do it tomorrow." He replied, kissing the top of her head gently.  
  
They stayed in each others arms until the sun had fully rose. The common room was bathed in a golden light, warming the chilly space. They just sat there peacefully, rocking back and forth. Hermione's sniffling had subsided, and they sat in silence until she looked up at him with her watery brown eyes.  
  
"Thank you for staying here with me." She said, giving him a week smile.  
  
"You're my best friend. Why wouldn't I stay here?" he said, pushing a piece of hair away from her face.  
  
As he moved his figures gently along her face and over towards her ear, she caught his hand in her's and intertwined their figures. Their eyes locked, brown meeting emerald, and they were lost in each other. Harry felt like they were the only ones that existed, the only ones that were in the tower, in the castle. A smile spread across his lips, one that was filled with happiness and love. They moved closer to each other, if that were possible, and they moved their heads closer together. Their lips moved nearer, Harry's heart was almost leaping out of his chest. Then, they both stopped, and blushed a bright crimson before they got up off the sofa.  
  
"I think we should...go...get dressed. Um...yeah." Said Harry nervously about what just might have happened.  
  
"Um...you're right...we should go. Everyone will be...getting up soon." Stammered Hermione, who seemed just as nervous as he did.  
  
Harry backed up, and started to sprint back up the boy's stairs, but something caught his eye. It was a woman dressed in black, her robes billowing behind her, walking back up to the castle from the Forbidden Forest. She was walking quite quickly, and the hood of her robes hid her face well. Harry noted it, but didn't think to dwell on it, so he continued going back up to his dorm. He was now mentally kicking himself for almost kissing his best friend, but she had almost kissed him too. Could that mean something? No, they were just caught up in the moment. Nothing more. It was just a little comforting thing, they were both upset over what they had just seen and felt and had not been responsible for their actions; that was it. Harry continued to tell himself that it was just an accident as he showered and changed into a sweater and jeans. Although he believed what he told himself, in the back of his mind he knew he was wrong. He through on his black robes and walked back down into the common room, to find Hermione walking down the stairs as well. He took a deep breath, hoping that he wasn't blushing or doing anything stupid as he walked towards her. She straightened herself up, adding the last of her books into her already bulging bag. He smiled at her slightly and she did the same, although they both felt incredibly awkward.  
  
"It was an accident, we got caught up in the moment. It meant nothing." He said, in an extremely fast pace.  
  
"You're right, we were both feeling bad and it was just a slip up. It meant nothing." She said, just as fast as he.  
  
They smiled to each other, feeling as if the tension had been lifted and walked together through the portrait hole and down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Despite the amount of time that had past Harry felt incredibly stiff, as if he and just run a long distance in cold weather. He could see that Hermione felt that same way as she was constantly massaging her muscles. When the made it to the Great Hall, they found it completely disserted from any staff member or house elf. No food was on the tables, but the flatware was still on each table spotlessly clean. They sat down at the Gryffindor table and took out their black journals and began to write about the dream and talk about it form each perspective. Hermione had seen it longer than Harry had, but the worst part was she had seen him die and he heard her sniffle faintly as she told him this. Slowly students began to filter into the Great Hall, some still droopy-eyed from staying up too late the night before. Ron, Ginny and Seamus were the first fifth years to come into the hall, Seamus looking almost sick. Harry and Hermione hastily put their books away, shoving them in Hermione's book bag, and smiled at their friends. It was quite hard to carry on a conversation with the exhausted people, Seamus was clutching his stomach, having eaten too many sweets, Ron was stuffing his face and Ginny was practically sleeping on her plate of waffles. Harry found that he wasn't very good company either, since he was sore all over and extremely tired from being up so late and so early. Hermione seemed to share his sentiment.  
  
Right after breakfast, the small group took the carriages to Hogsmeade. Once there, they bought more candy, went into the joke shop and drank as much butterbear as they could stomach. They chilly air didn't really seem to bother them as they walked through the small village and looked into all of the shops. They stayed there until a little while after lunch before they took the carriages back. Hermione wanted to get some homework done and they had had enough candy for one weekend, so they climbed into the rather bumpy carriages to go back to the castle.   
  
"I don't see why you have to do homework now." Said Ron, who wouldn't do any homework until late Sunday evening.  
  
"I want to have tomorrow free and besides, I don't really feel like walking." Said Hermione, looking over to Harry as she said this.  
  
Harry nodded, knowing that if they continued walking they wouldn't be able to move by tomorrow. "Besides Ron, it's too cold. We were just walking around anyway." Said Harry, trying to get him to drop the subject.  
  
Ron seemed satisfied with this, but still not happy, and continued to sulk as they walked into Gryffindor tower. Once there, barley a soul sitting inside, they began doing their homework, but Harry's mind drifted to something else. It drifted to the woman he had seen walking away form the Forbidden Forest. A thousand thoughts crossed his mind as to why she might have been there, but each one was more ludicrous than the next. It could have been one of the teachers, McGonagall or Sprout, but in the back of his mind he knew it was neither one of them. He wanted desperately to know whom it could be, what she was doing out in the forest in the middle of the night and why she had to be so secretive. This was really starting to trouble him, and he wanted to figure it out before he went mad with curiosity. Hopefully, it would come together soon.  
  
A/N: Alright, first off, I want to start to formally thank all of you for reviewing and also answer some of your questions. Please review the next chapter and I will answer any of your questions. So here we go.  
  
BabyJ5- thanx! I know about the spelling and I will fix it.  
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Hyper Witch- glad you like it! I'll try to make Hermione not such a cry baby, but put yourself in her position. Tuff stuff.  
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Dana- thanx!  
  
Second of all, I'm sorry it's so short and took so long, but I've been busy with school and things. I'll try to do better on the next one. Promise. 


	4. The Little Hangleton Massacre

A/N: Well, the wait is over, and here is the forth chapter! Thank you to all who reviewed and I hope you like this!  
  
  
  
  
  
November arrived with strange weather. After a frightfully cold first day, the cold weather had continued for a week until the temperature reached seventy and each and every classroom was stifling. Harry was no longer receiving any horrible dreams, and neither was Hermione; for which he was glad. Everything seemed normal for once; calm and peaceful as if some higher power had decided to give them a break. Nothing may have been disturbing them, but Hermione was hell bent on finding out what their dreams meant, and there was no stopping her.  
  
"Hermione give it up! You are not going to find anything in this library about what is going on. We've already looked." Said Harry, trying to coax her into coming out.  
  
"I want to figure this out Harry, please. You of all people should know what I'm trying to accomplish." Said Hermione, not even looking at him as she talked.  
  
Harry sighed, defeated, and decided to help her look. It was the least he could do. As they collected books, neither of them spoke, that was until Hermione got a rather puzzled look upon her face. She was standing in front of a bookshelf, looking at the many large tomes that lined the walls, her brow furrowed in confusion. Harry tried to see what she was so confused about, but her didn't understand it.  
  
"Um, Herm, what 'cha looking at?" he asked.  
  
"There's a book missing. I thought it would be the answer to this, but it's not here." She said.  
  
"So, books are taken out all the time. That's the purpose of the library." Said Harry.  
  
"I know it's just that that book serves no purpose what so ever. No one would want it. I mean there is no reason why any student would want that book." She said, looking at the dusty bookshelf and the aging tomes that were leaning against each other.  
  
Harry studied the bookshelf for a moment, and decided to ask the title of the book that had gotten Hermione into such a huff. "What was the name of the book?"  
  
"That's just it, I had it in my head and now it's gone. I know what it is, and that it's supposed to be located here, but now that title is just; gone." She said, her eyes glassy.  
  
Harry looked at her for a moment, studying her, trying to figure out exactly what was going through her head, but everything escaped him. It was then that a window near them blew open and a cold wind ruffled their hair and the papers on Madame Pince's desk. Harry felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end and every bone in his body became as cold as ice. Next to him, Hermione was experiencing the same thing, and their eyes locked as a snowflake fluttered through the open window.  
  
  
*  
  
  
The cold wind blew across the country, all the way to a small village by the name of Little Hangleton. As the wind blew, the villagers stopped what they were doing and gathered on the streets. Shop keepers abandoned their registers, teachers and students abandoned their studies, even the animals felt the need to gather outside, and soon the town square was filled with people as they looked into the direction of the Riddle House.   
Snow whipped with the wind and the tops of houses and buildings were becoming covered in a blanket of white, but each and every person remained in the square, even though their faces were becoming red from the cold. They stood transfixed on the mansion, waiting for the something that had been calling to them. As if their prayers had been answered, or more correctly their nightmares, a howling sound broke out. One might mistake it as the wind, if he did not want to succumb to his fear. The howling was most defiantly a laugh, one of pure evil, hatred and malice. It was the laugh of a person who was not truly a person at all, and every villager felt a cold rush up their spine, as if ice had been dropped down their shirts.   
The laughter continued on, each villager becoming fearful of what might happen next. As soon as it had come, the small snowstorm stopped and all was quiet. An eerie silence filled the air and no one made a single move, afraid that whatever had been laughing would chastise them. Then, from above the Riddle House, black storm clouds formed, as black as ravens feathers. The clouds circled out, making a spiral above the ghostly mansion and the area of cloud that was closest to the mansion became a bright green. Thunder sounded, and bright green lightning flashed in the sky, and made the frightened villagers jump. It was at the moment that a bolt of lightning, tinged with red, fell down from the sky and struck the mayor of Little Hangleton, a black scorch mark being the only thing left.  
  
This started the slaughter that to this day is looked back on with fear and white faces. This started the Little Hangleton Massacre. The entire village was slaughtered ruthlessly; men, women and children all fell to this so-called 'freak' lightning. People were struck down as they ran for their lives, their horrific screams echoing throughout the hills of the countryside. As the last person was struck down, his final scream fading into the wind, his final breath of life fading into the cold. It ended.   
The streets were stained with ash and blood, never to come clean again. For this had been the blood of the innocent. The blood of people who didn't deserve to die this cruelly and at this time. These people had done nothing to deserve this fate, and this had not been their destiny. But destiny has a way of throwing you a curve ball, and this had defiantly been an unexpected play. A light snowfall now fell, covering the ground and the decaying bodies. It snowed so much that night that every body was covered in a thick blanket and you wouldn't notice that anything had really happened. The death of the villagers was realised when a couple on holiday came into the village for some food and found the frozen people. The couple had been so traumatized that they were admitted to a mental hospital to get over their findings, yet they can still see their faces when they close their eyes.  
The clouds had disappeared from above the Riddle House, and everything was silent as the snow fell. Yet, if one were to look into the top window, the one overlooking the town, he would see a cold man looking out at the destruction. This man, however, could hardly be categorized as a man at all. He had a pale complexion and red, snake-like eyes. His nose and mouth were nothing but slits in his face, yet his mouth was contorted into some sort of horrible smile. His arms were behind his back and he chuckled to himself at the scene before him. He walked away from the window, his black robes billowing behind him. He walked out of the room and down the dark and desolate hall to another room that overlooked that back gardens. A roaring fire was in the hearth and he sat down in an old, weather-beaten high-backed chair. One of the queerest things about the room was the large snake that was curled on the rug at the mans feat. The snake raised its great head, looking at the man with its large black eyes. The man, who seemed not afraid of the creature, stroked its scaly head with a large, boney hand.  
  
"All in good time my pet. All in good time." He said, his voice hissing out each syllable.  
  
The fire flickered, sending shadows out across the room, and only the snap of the log and the gentle swish of the great snake, Nagini's, tail was heard. Un-noticed to the man, the large gilded mirror that hung on the wall opposite him held a figure in the glass, a beautiful woman by the name of Morgan. She was getting very close to what she desired, she could feel it.  
  
"Yes my Lord, all in good time." She whispered, her voice silky and deadly. "Time is all that is needed to bring upon the beginning of the end."   
  
The hissing wind outside was the only other sound in the village of Little Hangleton. All life had ceased and the village was now a wasteland, devoid of any life what so ever. Although everything was peaceful in this village, two hundred miles away, pain and horrible pictures filled the mind of two Hogwarts students.  
  
  
A/N: I know that this was incredibly short, but I'm building the story. I hoped you liked this anyway though.  
  
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